Global ICT Services : Introduction

A service is something that you can buy which does not exist as an object. For example haircuts and operations are services. Paying an accountant or solicitor to give you advice or a secratary to type a document for you would also be services. Usually when you buy a service you are paying someone to do something for you. This contrasts with buying a good such as a book where you are paying someone to give you something.

Many services can now be delivered using information systems. These services are mostly concerned with manipulating information. They take some information from you, process it in some way and then return the outputs of this processing to you. Because information can be sent around the world very quickly using methods such as fax, telephone and email these services can be provided from anywhere in the world. It does not matter if the person purchasing the service is in a totally different country to the company or person supplying the service.

A service which processes information using an information system and can be provided from anywhere in the world is known as a Global ICT Service.

GCSE ICT Companion 04 - (C) P Meakin 2004